safe deposit box

{{short description|Secure container for storage of valuables – usually in a bank}}

{{hatnote|"Safe deposit" redirects here; not to be confused with Safedeposits in Scotland.}}

{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2021}}

Image:safeaccounts.jpg.]]

Image:Safe deposit vault after EF5 tornado.jpg, Missouri after the 2011 Joplin tornado, remaining intact despite the destruction of the bank that housed it.]]

A safe deposit box, sometimes referred to as a safety deposit box, is an individually secured container, usually held within a larger safe or bank vault. Safe deposit boxes are generally located in banks, post offices or other institutions. Safe deposit boxes are used to store valuable possessions, such as gemstones, precious metals, currency, marketable securities, luxury goods, important documents (e.g. wills, property deeds, or birth certificates), or computer data, which need protection from theft, fire, flood, tampering, or other perils. In the United States, neither banks nor the FDIC insure the contents. An individual can purchase separate insurance for the safe deposit box in order to cover e.g. theft, fire, flooding or terrorist attacks.

Some hotels, resorts, and cruise ships offer safe deposit boxes or small safes to their patrons, for temporary use during their stay.Payne, Kirby D. [http://www.hotel-online.com/Trends/Payne/Articles/SafetyDepositBoxes.html Safety Deposit Boxes and In-Room Safes.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160808065120/http://www.hotel-online.com/Trends/Payne/Articles/SafetyDepositBoxes.html |date=8 August 2016 }} Hotel Online data base of News and Trends. These facilities may be located behind the reception desk, or securely anchored within private guest rooms for privacy.{{cite news |last1=Micahel |first1=Alex |title=Safety Deposit box Dubai |url=https://www.keepsecure.ae/ |access-date=20 December 2022 |archive-date=3 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221203012811/https://www.keepsecure.ae/ |url-status=live }}

The contents of safe deposit boxes may be seized under the legal theory of abandoned property.{{cite web | url = https://www.creditinfocenter.com/community/topic/241628-why-treasures-in-safe-deposit-boxes-get-lost/ | title = Why treasures in safe deposit boxes get 'lost' | author = Liz Pulliam Weston | work = MSN Money | date = 22 June 2005 | access-date = 17 July 2017 | archive-date = 4 January 2019 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190104120328/https://www.creditinfocenter.com/community/topic/241628-why-treasures-in-safe-deposit-boxes-get-lost/ | url-status = live }} They also may be searched and seized by the order of a court through the issuance of search warrant.{{cite web | url = https://www.americansafedeposit.com/blog/files/legal-issues/search-warrants.pdf | title = Search Warrants | work = American Safe Deposit | access-date = 14 April 2018 | archive-date = 14 April 2018 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180414091749/https://www.americansafedeposit.com/blog/files/legal-issues/search-warrants.pdf | url-status = dead }}

In the United States and elsewhere, safe deposit boxes are considered a "legacy service"; many new bank branches do not bother to install any.{{Cite news |last=Cowley |first=Stacy |date=2019-07-19 |title=Safe Deposit Boxes Aren't Safe |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/19/business/safe-deposit-box-theft.html |access-date=2022-07-19 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=1 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201001100255/https://www.nytimes.com/2019/07/19/business/safe-deposit-box-theft.html |url-status=live }} In the 20th century, bank branches were more prestigious; in the 21st century, space has grown more valuable with higher land values and rents, and many banks see the service as ancillary to their core business. Additionally, despite the public perception of safe deposit boxes as being extremely secure, there is little incentive for banks to actually ensure this is true;{{cite news |last1=Hendry |first1=Leah |title=How safe are safety deposit boxes? They're not as protected as you may think |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/safety-deposit-box-protection-1.7338220 |work=CBC News |access-date=3 October 2024 |date=2 October 2024 |archive-date=2 October 2024 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241002232847/https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/safety-deposit-box-protection-1.7338220 |url-status=live }} there are no federal laws in the US governing the matter or rules that would require compensation to customers if property stored there is stolen or destroyed.